Morning journal and courier., 1887-12-05
ON FERNANDO NORONHA.
Fauna and Flora of a South American
TaIand.

Fauna and Flora of a South American
Island.
The little English expedition to explore
Fernando Noronha brought back some inter
esting matter, which its chief, Mr.. Ridley,
embodied in paper read be fore the Linnean
society.
The surface of the island, which is of an
cient volcanic origin, is hilly, the main peak
being considerably above one thousand feet
high, while the existence of reef rock high
above the sea level indicates that it is rising.
The soil is a rich, deep red clay, capable of
yielding all tropical crops. The group is not
far enough from the main land to rank
among oceanic islands, with their own plants
and animals, like the Galapagos on the other
side of the American continent They are
essentially con tinental-that is to say, the
fora and the fauna have South America
facies, and with the exception of one or two
species of plants and animals-whieh may
have been overlooked elseWhere-do not pos
sess any forms peculiar to themselves. A
land shell is one of the exceptions, and two
others are found only here and in Mauritius
and Australia. But most of the species are
familiar Brazilian or West Indian forms.
Indeed so ruthlessly have the convicts rooted
mn shrubs and cut down trees that, except in
remote spots, the native fora has all but dis
| appeared, while the host of introduced weeds,
ciimb bers and cultivated plants areas Is in
yariably the case-fsst eradicating the origl-
nal denizens of the land. The '1aurelled
| baran-which is now for the first time as
signed to its proper place in the system-and
the pinbao, with its milky juice Gatropha
gossypifolia), are among the species remain
| ing, while the great pest Of the island is the
| istropha urens, which stings SO virulently
that a specimen has to be lasseed with a
looped string, kicked up with the foot and
/ borne to the drying paper, slung ike the
grapes that the Hebrew spies brought from
l She vale of Eschol. The fcus noronhae, q
wild fig, is peculiar to the islands; and there
/ ia also q bird not found elsewhere. But the
| maiority-boobies, frigate birds and so forth
| are more cosmopolitan. The woods, or such
| woods as remain, are full of a reddish brown
Brazilian dove (peristera gofroyi) 1t was
| possibly introduced into the island, though
| it is now wonderfully tame, owing to its be-
ing rarely shot at Indeed, 80 confding are
these birds that stones have to be thrown al
then before they will take wing. Yet Mr
Ridley tells US that the sea fowl which breed
on the islands are by no means so numerous
| as they once were. There are no fresh water
fishes, but several reptiles of the South
American type, though one OF the two liz
ards, emprepes punctstus, 10 peculiar TO the
place, its nearest relation being found In De
| merara. No mammals of any sort except
| those which have been introduced now exist
Among the latter the rats and mice simply
swarm. At intervals one of the tasks sci
the conyicts is to kill specific number OF
these vernin, eaeh man being set down, as
villains were in old times in England foI
wolves head, for q certain NUMBER OF mem n
Sometimes during the dry season, when the
vegetation dies down and the holes are
more easily got at, the great battues will
bring in twenty thousand day.